Abstract:

This is a comparative study of rationale and effects of management accounting innovations in Greek and Italian local governments, as part of innovation in performance measurement systems in the public sector. The paper identifies intended purposes of management accounting innovations, analyses a set of factors affecting implementation of management accounting technologies, and discusses determinants and features of such innovation on a comparative perspective, considering the politico-administrative context, the design of the accounting reform package, and the building over time of management accounting capacities at the level of individual Italian and Greek municipalities. The study provides an interesting analysis of management accounting technologies and the diffusion process enabling their adoption, which helps to understand which are obstacles and enablers of management accounting innovations in local governments in Napoleonic tradition countries.